Deal creates world's biggest gambling firm
Harrah’s Entertainment has taken the Las Vegas gambling industry by surprise by agreeing to buy Caesars Palace owners Caesars Entertainment for more than €4.5bn.
The deal eclipses last month’s high-profile MGM Mirage merger with Mandalay Resort Group and creates the largest gambling company in the world.
The boards of the two Las Vegas-based companies agreed in principle to the deal, sources said.
But the companies have some issues that remain unresolved, the source said.
Harrah’s Entertainment, which operates heavily with riverboat casinos, has 26 casinos in 13 American states under the Harrah’s and Showboat names. It has about 41,000 employees.
Caesars had been the world’s largest casino operator. An MGM Mirage-Mandalay combination would surpass either of the individual companies but fall short of the merged Harrah’s-Caesars company.
Caesars recently sold the ageing Las Vegas Hilton and is using the money to pay off debt. The company has invested millions into revamping Caesar’s Palace, its signature property on the Las Vegas Strip.
